U.S. Rep. Hansen Clarke wants the federal government to let Detroit help itself, and he's getting help from an unlikely source as he looks to move his legislation through Congress.

Macomb County Republican Candice Miller is co-sponsoring the Detroit Jobs Trust Fund Act, a plan to use all federal taxes paid by Detroit residents on local projects for a period of five years.

Oct. 18, Detroit Free Press: Miller, who works with Clarke on the Homeland Security Committee, praised the legislation, which would let the city eliminate its income tax for five years. She also said that it could help the Obama administration develop an urban agenda.

"I don't represent Detroit, but I think you can look around Detroit and see a lot of urban areas who ... would look at this and want the same thing," she said. "An argument can be made that Detroit needs it more than anybody else. But it could be an inexpensive way for the federal government to have some real meaningful urban agenda. I'm not interested in raising taxes to give money to the City of Detroit, and the city can't keep raising taxes either. But they have to get the debt paid and get ahead on crime and do something about the infrastructure."

Clarke first described his plan in a September letter to President Barack Obama, proposing the Treasury use Detroit's federal taxes to help the cash-strapped city relieve oustanding deficits, invest in public safety, education, job development and infrastrucutre.

"We realize that the strongest incentive to attract business to Detroit and keep employers here is to have safe streets and good schools," Clarke told MLive.com last month. "And then by lowering the cost of living we'll attract residents and businesses because the property taxes will be lower when the city doesn't have a debt to finance."

Miller is one of 31 co-sponsors backing the bill, but it's hard to downplay the symbolism of a Macomb County Republican backing a Detroit Democrat's tax-based recovery plan for the city. The region and the state need a healthy Detroit. And according to Clarke and Miller, so does the nation.

Clarke is scheduled to host a town hall meeting on Wednesday at Grosse Pointe South High School. The event, which begins at 6 p.m., is free and open to the public.